Keith Browning Posted April 21, 2011 Share Posted April 21, 2011 My girls and most kids in NJ have this week off from school for spring break. So I took a personal day and we took off to Manhattan to the American Museum of Natural History on Central Park West. We joined my Mother, my sister and some cousins early. Holy cow it was packed which kinda made it suck a little. Normally I hear it is never as crowded as it was today. Lucky us. But it was still a good trip. The day ended with a show at the Hayden Planetarium which is always awesome to see! It has been greatly updated since I was a kid. We even got to touch a meteorite. The last time I went there I was in grammar school... then there was that time in high school I went to see Laser Floyd there. That was a totally different "experience." For the kids I think the best part of the trip was going through the Lincoln Tunnel "under the Hudson River." I almost want to go again in hopes of much lighter crowds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregH Posted April 23, 2011 Share Posted April 23, 2011 In June, we're planning on going down to Florida for the last shuttle launch. Atlantis is scheduled to fly on the 28th, but will likely be delayed. So, we're staying flexible. While we're there, we'll be heading to Brevard Community College - about 10 miles from Kennedy Space Center - to see their planetarium and observatory. They've got a 24" telescope open to the public two days a week: Brevard Astronomy Department There are a few other activities planned - a really nice wildlife sanctuary/amusement park in Ocala: Silver Springs Ocala - It's got a very interesting history. We'll probably revisit the Museum of Science and Industry on the way down or up, depending on scheduling: MOSI And we have some family living on Anna Maria Island, FL whom we may stay a night or two with: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith Browning Posted April 23, 2011 Author Share Posted April 23, 2011 Sweet! I have always wanted to see a shuttle launch in person but it looks like that will never happen. I understand it is an amazing experience, the sight, the sound and the feel of the launch affects you physically and for many, emotionally. I do plan on going to the Intrepid Air and Space museum after they receive their shuttle. Enjoy your trip... I am green with envy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregH Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 My father worked at Lockheed Martin in New Orleans back when the shuttle program first started up. They built the external tank there. He retired in the early 2000's and sometime later he and my mother went to Florida to watch a launch. I've got one of their photos blown up and framed in my living room. We went to the space museum in Huntsville, AL late last year for a weekend jaunt. They have a full size mockup of the shuttle and other spacecraft there. It's much larger in person than it appears on television or on the computer. Here's something interesting - compare the view of a launch from the ground - seems to gently lift off the pad: - to the view from the craft. From here you can see just how fast they are leaping upwards: The acceleration experienced at liftoff is very similar to the acceleration felt during an 11 second quarter mile. Hard to imagine such a large vehicle accelerating that fast... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Amacker Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 I saw one liftoff from a highrise condo in Orlando, 50 miles away. It was cool- watch it on TV take off, then at about T+15 walk out on the porch and watch it live. Even at 50 miles it was clear what you were watching and quite thrilling, and that was decades ago. Last year the shuttle went over Naples during landing while I was with a customer in a large metal building. The whole building shook with the sonic boom and scared the crap out of us. I didn't know what it was until I watched the news that night and they told us..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fredsvt Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 It's so disappointing to know that the shuttle program is ending, due to the stupidity of Mr Obama. I grew up watching the whole program start, the first launch all the way to the last one. Yes, it's 30 years old, but the shuttles were designed for 100 missions each. We're going backwards, relying on countries we can't trust for stuff like this. Add to that, what he's got the NASA director doing. Total crap. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eastendpowerstroke Posted April 24, 2011 Share Posted April 24, 2011 My grandparents had a condo right on the Indian river in Titusville FL. about 15 or so miles from the shuttle launch pad. if you drew an east-west line from the launch pad to the corner of US RT 1(S Washington Dr) and Olmsted ave it would point to there patio. I never got to see a shuttle launch in person but I did get to see a rocket launching a satellite once, it was impressive. Grandpa was quite the camera buff so I had many great shots of shuttle launches when I was a kid including the Columbia explosion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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